Smurfit Kappa stand-up pouch to transform beverage packaging market

- To capitalize on sales of wine in cans and pouches; option for other drinks also

 

- Significant resource reductions due to lower weight of material compared to glass

 

Paper-based packaging specialist Smurfit Kappa has launched Pouch-Up, a flexible packaging product that it says can transform the drinks market by offering an alternative to glass.

 

Available in 1.5-3l pouches, the lightweight, free-standing beverage pouch has a 100 percent printed surface for branding, a dispensing Vitop tap that extends the life of drinks after opening and a carbon footprint of just 20 percent of a traditional glass container.

 

Pouch-Up is a lighter alternative to glass with exceptional shelf stand-out, and a unique shape and finish designed to capitalize on retailers’ prediction of strong sales increase of wines in cans and pouches, Smurfit Kappa said.

 

As well as being ideal for the wine market, Smurfit Kappa has developed the Pouch-Up for further applications such as cocktails and fresh fruit juices, including a Worldstar award-winning cocktail pack created for Manchester Drinks (pictured, top).

 

Pouch-Up does not require a secondary outer box and improves logistics by increasing the volume of liquid a delivery vehicle can carry and, due to a reduction of raw material at only 35g for a 1.5l pack, there is significant transport and storage efficiency resulting in an improved supply chain.

 

With a traditional glass bottle making up 29.6 percent of the weight of a litre of wine, Pouch-Up weighs in at just 2.3 percent of it’s filled weight, delivering a significant improvement in carbon footprint.

 

The new environmentally friendly Pouch-Up is easy-to-pour with its ultra-light, go-anywhere design, is lightweight to carry, easy to re-seal and is perfect for any occasion – at home or for outdoor gatherings including events, festivals and barbecues.

 

Pouch-Up was debuted at London’s International Wine Fair.

 

Kevin Heath, sales director, Smurfit Kappa Bag in Box, Ireland and UK, said: ‘We believe Pouch-Up is the shape of things to come, transforming the look of the wine shelves and aisles, delivering a lighter take anywhere pack with an 80 percent lower carbon footprint than glass packaging, and which is already well established with leading retailers, including Asda, who are launching four own-label wine pouches priced at £9.’

 

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